4:


Mai's mother fluttered about the room. "I'm so glad you've come to your senses, Mai!" She picked up a giant feather and stuck it in Mai's hair above her left ear; it hung down feebly. "A dinner date with Zhao-Yen! What could be more wonderful?"

Mai looked dismal. "Kill me now. Please kill me now."

Her mother snatched the feather and replaced with a red rose. "If things work out between you too, our family could be set for life!" She tied a matching red silk sash around Mai's black robe with the red edges around the sleeves. "You look so lovely!" Mai's mother dabbed her eyes on her sleeve. "I couldn't be more proud!"

Mai rolled her eyes and groaned. "Why don't you just stick a knife in my head?"


Downstairs, Zhao-Yen was waiting by the door. He offered an arm to Mai, who declined. "I knew you really liked me," he whispered.

"Keep dreaming," she whispered back.

Captain Zhao stood nearby, his hands clasped behind his back. "Such a good looking pair."

Mai looked at him poisonously. "Don't you start."

"Mai!" Her mother hissed.

Mai's father stepped forward. "Have her back by eleven!"

"Eleven is it!" Zhao-Yen said genially.

Mai moaned. "That long?"


As Mai and Zhao-Yen walked through the city, she said, "Do you have to wear that ridiculous uniform?"

Zhao-Yen puffed with pride. "This is my Junior Fire Navy uniform! I may only be in the junior corps now, but it'll prepare me for the real deal when I turn eighteen!"

Mai turned to him. "Why are you doing this to me?"

"What?"

"Why do you insist on taking me out? You don't even know me!"

"I think you're very pretty."

"Well thank you," said Mai. "But that's not all I am! You don't know my life, my hobbies, my dislikes, and believe me, there's a lot of them. This face is not just me!"

"But…" Mai's eyes slid to an alleyway, concealed in shadows. She grabbed Zhao-Yen by the arm.

"Go!" She commanded quietly.

"What are you doing?"

"Don't talk, and don't look over your shoulder," she ordered. "Just keep moving."

Footsteps scuffed behind them. Zhao-Yen whirled around. "What's going on?" He boomed.

Mai groaned and put her face in her sleeves. "I told you to keep moving, you idiot!"

Three large men, all tall, stood behind them. One with a dark ponytail had the Fire Nation Insignia tattooed on his large bicep. The other two were shaved bald. They held knives and sticks.

"What a pretty pair!" Said the tattooed one snidely.

The taller of the two bald men said roughly, "All right, hand over all your loot!"

Zhao-Yen stepped in front of Mai. "And makes what you think we have any money?"

The shorter bald man pointed with his club to Zhao-Yen. "Your outfit! Looks pretty ritzy to me!"

Zhao-Yen grinned sheepishly at Mai, who just looked irritated. "Uh, it's nothing expensive, just standard regulation for Junior Fire Navy trainees…"

"I don't care about your regulations!" The shorter man snapped. "Give us your stuff!"

Zhao-Yen stood tall. "Stand back, Mai! What these peasant thugs don't know is that I'm first in my class in the Junior Navy! Gentlemen, and I use the term loosely, observe!" He stretched out his palms. Two balls of fire, each the size of his head, rolled out of his skin. "Impressive, no? And that's not even half of what I can do! If you serfs don't want to be on the receiving end of my fire power, I suggest that you leave the lady and I at bay."

The goons looked at each other and smirked. "What?" Demanded Zhao-Yen. "Don't you understand that I am a very powerful bender?"

"It's understood," said the tattooed one. "Unfortunately for you, so are we!" He and the taller bald man burst out large hot flames that dwarfed Zhao-Yen. The other bald man took his stick and blew on it. The blaze from his lips seared the wood until it was a torch.

With their fire power, they moved in closer. "Now, are you going to give us your stuff, or do you want to get burnt?"

Zhao-Yen shrieked. He pulled a bag of coins away from his belt and tossed it away. Landing on the ground, it split and golden pieces spilt on the dirt road.

"You too, Missy!" Said the taller of the bald men. He grasped her arm.

"Go back to the sewer where you came from!" Mai tried to pull away, but no good. He had discovered her secret sleeve pocket. "Looky here!" He dropped Mai so roughly, she fell to the dirt. He held the copper knife.

Mai's eyes flashed. "That's mine!"

The three gathered in a circle examining their prize. "Think it's worth much?"

"She had somethin' engraved in the blade, so it must be valuable!"

"What do think the hilt's made of?"

"It's definitely not gold. Bronze maybe." The tattooed man stood over the infuriated Mai. "Little gurrrls shouldn't playsies with da knives! Yousa get a big booboo!" He and the other guffawed loudly. "Come on, let's go! We got what we need from these saps…"

Zhao-Yen crawled up Mai. "Let's get out of here!" He turned and ran. At the end of the street he stopped. "Mai?" He shrieked. "Mai what are you doing?"

Mai stood up as the three muggers walked away. With a whip of her arm, a small stiletto with a jagged edge flew from her sleeve and toward the tattoo man. It clipped his ponytail and sent the dark hair to the ground.

All three turned as the stiletto boomeranged back into Mai's hand. "You missed a couple," she said in a low tone. A barrage of arrows flew from the top of her sleeves and right toward the robbers. They threw themselves to the ground as the barbs whizzed above and into the building behind them.

"Whoa," said one, observing the arrows that pierced the wall. "She's pretty tough, Boss. I think we should just leave." His companions nodded and jumped up.

As they ran, Mai said, "Oh no you don't!" From a pocket on the inside of her robe, she pulled out two more stilettos. She hurled them at Tattoo Man's feet and as he went sprawling, they pinned his pants to the ground. His two companions didn't even bother looking back.

He looked up as Mai stood above him, her outstretched arm pointing at his face. "I've got about twenty-five more arrows in this one sleeve alone and I will not hesitate to put them through your brain if you don't give me what I want."

"What? Name it! Just don't kill me!"

"My knife!" She ordered. "Now!"

"Chest pocket," he said. As Mai was pulling it out, she noticed Zhao-Yen off to the side.

"And I want the stolen money back!"

"My friend has it! He stuffed it in his pocket before we ran!"

"Really?" Said Mai. "You know, I have more than just arrows and stilettos up my sleeves. I've collected a fine array of knives, daggers, machetes, and even a scalpel or two…"

"Oh wait, look what I found!" He reached into his shirt and pulled out Zhao-Yen's money pouch.

Mai snatched it and used her copper knife to pry up the stilettos. He jumped up.

As he tore off after his friends, Mai turned and dropped the pouch in Zhao-Yen's hand. He took it numbly. "So are we going to dinner or what?"

"You…" He didn't look at the bag but continued to stare. "You just fought off those goons."

"I wouldn't say fought."

"Mai," Zhao-Yen stuffed the purse in his pocket. "I…This isn't going to work."

Mai could scarcely believe her ears. "Say what?"

"I hope you're not too disappointed, but you're just not…delicate enough for me."

"Delicate?" Repeated Mai. "You mean instead of someone who can stand on her own two feet, you want a wispy flower petal?"

"Strong women terrify me!" Zhao-Yen admitted. Mai almost laughed, but true to her nature, she kept the irony of the situation to herself.

Inside she said, "Very well. If we turn back now, we'll just be in time for dinner at home."

"Dinner at home it is!" As she watched Zhao-Yen turn and run in the direction of the manor, Mai smiled to herself. She couldn't wait to tell Mother what little tools had scared Zhao-Yen off…